Then Georg and his Supa were in front of me, the older man laying his hands on mine and chanting something in his strange language. Georg’s head tilted, his brow furrowing as he struggled to keep with the speed and cadence of the words. I think I was crying, only because I noticed when I stopped, the pain finally diminishing to a more manageable level. I drew in great, gasping breaths, reaching out for Ronan while Supa held onto my injured hand. I bit down onto Ronan’s hand, this time his blood bringing effective relief. When I had enough, I withdrew and gathered the courage to look down at my arm.
Supa had it covered with a soft linen bandage and was inspecting the bindings carefully.
“What the hell was that?” Ronan demanded, but at no one in particular. I looked around for Luci but didn’t see her anywhere.
“He says they used to see injuries like this in the mountains, and over the generations figured out ways to treat them. He’s stopped it from progressing, but unless the person who cast it can reverse it…” Georg trailed off, not able to meet anyone’s eyes. Supa patted my hand gently. I sighed loudly.
“Benedict’s gonna be pissed.”
Ronan went white.
“He’ll kill me for letting you get hurt.” I whirled around, fangs flashing.
“You didn’t let anything happen. Take me to Luci. I need to talk to her.”
The witches and drakens shot each other looks, but no one moved.
“Where is she?” I demanded. “I order you to—”
“Wren, they’re just trying to protect you. I promise nothing will happen to Luci. You just...I can’t risk you getting hurt again. What if you’re pregnant?”
I froze. “What?” Ronan tucked me against him and growled until the crowd dispersed. He held up a hand, asking silently for Georg and Supa to stay. His arms around my shoulders were a steady force as my entire world bent and tilted under me. Pregnant?
“You’re not yet of course. Or we just can’t tell yet.” He sat down gently, running a hand through my hair.
“After a mateship is completed, the female’s fertile cycle usually begins. Since there are three of us, we figured it wouldn’t start until all three of us had you, together. Now that has occurred, so…” He trailed off, a hopeful look in his eyes.
“So.” I said back, my voice flat. “You said...you said I wasn’t pregnant?”
His golden eyes were full of fear...fear of what?
“Well, no. I’d smell it on you if you were.”
I looked up at him, my stomach turning.
“And if I do get pregnant, then what?” Ronan found my hands, squeezing them tightly as he rushed to reassure me.
“We will take the utmost care of you. You will stay where we can keep an eye on you, and your every need will be attended to until the birth. You’ll be—”
“A prisoner again, just like the women at the breeding house.”
Ronan blanched, then shook his head furiously. “No, Wren, no—”
“Yes,” I said emphatically, standing and ripping my hands from his. “You will be worse than you’ve ever been, and Kieran and Benedict! You will take away my freedom and my choices because of fear—you will be afraid of anything and everything where it concerns me.”
Ronan’s face twisted. “Please try to understand, there has been a draken babe born since—”
“You will NOT ruin my life!” I roared, and then the darkness was surrounding me, closing in...I stalked over to Georg and Supa, extending my hand.
“Are you ready?” They shot each other a look, then shrugged. Georg and Supa clasped their palms against mine, and we disappeared into the shadows. I ignored Ronan’s voice in the background, crying out my name.
We emerged back at the campsite, and I immediately knew something was wrong. Our supply packs were ripped and discarded, the food ruined and left out to the elements. Blood sprinkled the ground like a fresh layer of snow. I sniffed the air but got nothing. There were no signs of any living creature other than us.
“Shit,” I hissed to myself. I whirled back to Georg.
“Does your Supa have anything to contribute?”
The older man crouched down by some of the blood, rolling it between his fingers. He sniffed it and made a face. His hands curled into pretend claws, and he bared his teeth.
“Yartaq.”
I didn’t need a translator for that: lykos.
“Why didn’t they just shift away?” I asked the empty air, fighting to keep the panic from overwhelming me.
“Supa says he knows where they usually camp, but that you can’t go alone. He wants to take you back to our home and try to gather our forces.”
I shook my head. “No, I couldn’t ask that of you.”
Supa touched my hand, his brown eyes radiating intent.
“Dashka’a.”
“You’re welcome.”
I pulled away and backed away from them.
“Wait! We can help! Let us find—”
“I’m sorry,” I said, my voice choking. “I can’t ask this of you. I will find them.”
I disappeared to Georg’s cursing.
I reappeared on the rocks high above Georg and Supa, wanting to make sure they went on their way safely before I left. Georg and Supa argued, but eventually Georg shrugged his shoulders angrily and followed behind Supa, who led him away. Good.
I flew back down to campground, sniffing the blood and trying to look for details like Kieran had taught me. The witches' footprints were small like mine, and it was easy to see where they had been sleeping, startled awake, and then fighting. Their tracks seemingly vanished in the middle of the campsite, and I growled in frustration. Benedict’s tracks were easy to see as the largest of our group, and with a pounding heart I studied the large indentation in the ground near them, evidence of something large being dragged away. It made sense they didn’t shift away if Benedict was unconscious. What of Kieran?
I took to the sky, flying high enough just to get to the base of the mountain. I didn’t
